Have you taken your dog abroad on holiday?

lindsayH

lindsayH

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Hello all!

My collie now has her passport and I'm thinking about taking her on holiday with me this year. I was wondering if anyone here has taken their dog abroad. If so, what was it like? Where did you go? How did you travel? Where did you stay? Did you find the process easy? Any tips/advice/recommendations would also be gratefully received.

Thanks - Lindsay.
 
Never been abroad on holiday with the dogs, though we moved them all from UK to France and found that most places are suprisingly welcoming of dogs in France (you can ever turn up at most hotels without a reservation and be given a room with your dog - they put us up with 4 dogs and a cat!). We travelled down by car, took the Eurotunnel which was also nicely set up for dogs with exercise areas for doggies right before the train.

I am sure you know this, but just in case, the passport is not sufficient for re-entry in the UK, you need to have waited 6 months after the postiive rabbies antibodies test.
 
I'm tempted to take Tink away somewhere this year. When I was in Luxembourg there were dogs everywhere, in all the restaurants/cafes and in the hotel we stayed in. They were all so well behaved and in a lot of cases, well dressed. :D The europeans definitely seemed more dog friendly!

Yes, no helpful info but I'm tagging along for the future. ;)
 
I think i posted this on another passport thread but it was a nightmare.

Which ended in my dogs being in quarantine twice even though i had all the correct paperwork.
 
Yes we took our lab to France. You need to consider the crossing carefully. We did an overnight Portsmouth-Caen, but would strongly recommend either tunnel or short crossing. We went camping in vendee region, but quit restrictive as dogs weren't allowed on beach. Also consider the weather as it was quite hot when we went.
Returning to uk needs to be carefully planned as you need to book in vets within 48 hours of return, pay for tick treatment, health check, get passport stamped and conduct whole process in foreign language (including booking appointment) then paying a fortune for privilege. We were also stopped and searched this side in uk as we were only ones with a dog on the ferry.
Despite the extra hassle I would do it again. Vets near Calais are supposed to be better and are probably used more for this purpose. Hope that helps.
 
Thanks everyone, for your comments. I must admit to being a little nervous about the whole thing. The crossing worries me, I don't like the idea of leaving her on her own for the duration. Was thinking Eurostar?
 
Hmmm, sounds like Eurostar is probably the way to go then. I've got a horrible feeling that I'm going to get a shock when I find out how much it costs though. Going 3 stops on the underground is bad enough these days!
 
Travel abroad with my borzoi all the time, on average once a month back and too across the channel. Never once had a problem with the passports on return (fingers crossed !) but before leaving the UK I always check their chips with a reader to make sure they are still where they were the last time, and have not become inactive. If I have the tick and tapeworm done abroad check and check again the date and time they have recorded in the passport if correct, they have stamped and signed it, and have stamped and signed the health check page too. I take 2 to 4 at a time and not once have I been stopped and searched on the return at Dover or Harwich. They just hand me the chip reader and I go into the motorhome and scan the dogs myself, and they have never looked to see how many I have in there.

I use the ferry generally from Dover to Calais or Dunkerque, max 2 hours on board, but have also used Harwich to Hook of Holland, 6 hour trip. The staff on board will always let you check on your dogs during the journey. I don't use the kennels on board as they are too small and also look very damp. If you use the tunnel and for any reason are held in the tunnel for a breakdown or problem on the line it get unbearably hot and stuffy down there - yes it happend to us, fortunately we have electric roof fans to circulate air in, and take out stale air in the motorhome as you cannot run your engine for a/c. But have had a couple of friends who use the tunnel when that happend to them they nearly lost their dogs through heat stress.

Depending on where you take your dog there is a risk of it picking up disease we do not have in the UK, these things like the tick or mosquito born diseases, and also leishmania from sand fly.
 
Thank you for that helpful reply Zoisrus and thanks for the tips. I hadn't thought about train breakdowns, I'd be stressed enough if I was stuck in a tunnel let alone if I had the dog with me. May reconsider the ferry!
 
I think you mean the Eurotunnel rather than the Eurostar....the Eurotunnel being the one that you drive onto and stay in your car. Can you even take dogs on the Eurostar? My dog has travelled abroad every summer for the last 6 years - we tried the ferry but she got herself into such a tizz about being left alone that we'll never do that again. She's normally happiest in the car than anywhere else so can only assume it was the noise of the engines or the rocking sensation that upset her. These days we take the Eurotunnel - it's incredibly cheap, much quicker than the ferries, and you stay in your car with the dog rather than having to leave them alone.

Make sure you have a vet appointment booked just before your return journey and double check all the paperwork that they give you. Also check up on dog diseases prevalent in the place that your going to - heartworm etc - they're different to UK problems and you need to know what to look out for. Your dog might need some different vaccinations on top of the rabies too. Your vet is the best person to ask.

Happy holidays with your hound :)
 
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